“Great personality, down to earth
guy,” Miles said when describing the current chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff. “Most of the time when you see somebody with that kind of power on his
shoulders, you kind of don’t even know how to talk to people like that. What
kind of conversation are you supposed to strike up? You really don’t even know how
to make an approach. But he approaches you. And he’s so down to earth that [you
think] ‘Hey, I like him.’

“Because when you’re in a
situation like this, you’re like, ‘That’s the big guy. We’d better just stay in
our place and stay away from the big guy and do what you’re supposed to do.’
[But] he’s this guy that keeps coming around, talking to you, making sure
you’re having a good time, making sure you’re all right. He makes you feel
welcome, to the point that you want to be around. You want to want to have a
conversation with him. You want to talk to him. He’s just a cool cat.”

So cool in fact that when given
the chance to take part in the shows, the general steps right up.

“What I like about him is, I think
he is Irish, if I’m not mistaken. And he has his Irish song that he sings,”
Miles said, laughing. “I hope this time around … he [doesn’t] sing at every one
of the shows that we did as we were touring, but I hope he sings at every one
of them because let me tell you, it’s in him, he’s loves it and you can see how
passionate he is about it. And I love it.

“Just a cool guy, a really, really
great guy and I like the fact that he likes to be a part of what’s going on and
he participates and when he’s moving around the world, often times, we’re visiting
different hospitals and military bases, you can rest assured that he’s not up
in his room this guy’s up and moving around and doing more work than we are.
He’s dedicated.”

The commitment of both Dempsey and
the USO (which Miles described as “the ultimate caretakers of everyone in the
military”) that Miles witnessed during the 2011 tour had a profound effect on
him, spurring him to start his own non-profit organization, Miles of Giving.

“I enjoyed [the trip] so much,” he
said. “It triggered something in me, man. I went, I fell in love with the
troops and the next thing you know, I said, ‘This is going to be where I start
my foundation.’ I came back and created ‘Miles of Giving’ and we give back to
wounded veterans.”

With his participation in USO
tours like the recent Chairman’s Holiday Tour, Miles says he appreciates the
perspective he gains when he gives back to active military members.

“To sit with them and get to know
them, where they’re from, who they have back at home, the whole nine yards and
you just get a whole new respect for the people that go out and protect us,” he
said. “I think sometimes we take it for granted because we can’t see it, but to
go over and see it I’m like ‘Wow, this is the front line.’ They are policing
and taking care of everything.”

And the response from troops entertainers
like Miles enjoy shows that it truly is better to give than receive, especially
over the holidays.

“For us to bring home
entertainment there to them, it puts a smile on their face,” he said. “It takes
them away from where they are in that moment, they’re so appreciative. They
want it … and basically show them that we care. Show them that they matter. So
to go over there and give it to them and they enjoy a good show, from some
comedy to some singing to some recognizable faces that they’ve seen from
television to sports figures, I think it’s good. It just lets them know that …
‘America’s got our back.’”

* * *

Want a taste of Gen. Dempsey's singing prowess? Watch as he takes the stage with the Robertsons to sing a fresh, new classic holiday tune from the "Duck Dynasty" fellas called "Hairy Christmas" while on tour this month. (Video is courtesy of Staff Sgt. Mike Lahrman/DVIDS)

Photo captions: Top, Miles brings humor and laughter to hundreds of troops stationed at Bagram Air Base. Bottom, Jordin Sparks and Thomas “Nephew Tommy” Miles brightens
up the spirits of medical staff worker Lt. Col. Seagel at Kandahar Role 3 Hospital in Afghanistan in 2011. (USO photos by Dave Gatley)